The Third Book of Moses, Called Leviticus

Chapter 25

The sabbath of the seventh year, 1-7. The jubilee in the fiftieth year, 8-13. Of oppression, 14-17. A blessing of obedience, 18-22. The redemption of land, 23-28. Of houses, 29-34. Compassion to the poor, 35-38. The usage of servants, 39-46. The redemption of servants, 47-55.

1 And the LORD spoke to Moses on mount Sinai, saying, 2 "Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, 'When you come into the land which I give you, the land shall keep a sabbath to the LORD. 3 Six years you shall sow your field and six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in the fruit thereof, 4 But in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of rest for the land, a sabbath for the LORD. You shall neither sow your field, nor prune your vineyard. 5 That which grows of its own accord of your harvest, you shall not reap, neither gather the grapes of your vine undressed, for it is a year of rest for the land. 6 And the sabbath of the land shall be food for you—for you, for your man-servant, for your woman-servant, for your hired servant, for your stranger who sojourns with you, 7 For your cattle, and for the beasts that are in your land. All of its increase shall be food.

8 'And you shall number seven sabbaths of years to you, seven times seven years, so that the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be to you forty-nine years. 9 Then you shall cause the trumpet of the jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the day of atonement you shall make the trumpet sound throughout all your land. 10 And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee to you, and you shall return every man to his possession and return every man to his family. 11 A jubilee that fiftieth year shall be to you. You shall not sow, neither reap that which grows of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of your vine undressed. 12 For it is the jubilee. It shall be holy to you. You shall eat its increase out of the field.

13 'In the year of this jubilee you shall return every man to his possession. 14 And if you sell anything to your neighbor or buy anything from your neighbor's hand, you shall not oppress one another. 15 According to the number of years after the jubilee you shall buy from your neighbor and according to the number of years of the fruits he shall sell to you. 16 According to the multitude of years you shall increase its price and according to the fewness of years you shall diminish its price, for according to the number of the years of the fruits he sells to you. 17 You shall not therefore oppress one another, but you shall fear your God, for I am the LORD your God.

18 'Therefore, you shall do my statutes, keep my judgments, and do them, and you shall dwell in the land in safety. 19 And the land shall yield her fruit, and you shall eat your fill and dwell in it in safety. 20 And if you say, "What shall we eat the seventh year? Behold, we shall not sow nor gather in our increase," 21 Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year and it shall bring forth fruit for three years. 22 And you shall sow the eighth year and eat of old fruit until the ninth year. Until its fruits come in you shall eat of the old store.

23 'The land shall not be sold forever, for the land is mine, for you are strangers and sojourners with me. 24 And in all the land of your possession you shall grant a redemption for the land.

25 'If your brother becomes poor and sells some of his possession, and if any of his kin comes to redeem it, then he shall redeem that which his brother sold. 26 And if the man has no one to redeem it and he is able to redeem it, 27 Then let him count the years of its sale and restore the surplus to the man to whom he sold it so that he may return to his possession. 28 But if he is not able to restore it to him, then that which is sold shall remain in the hand of him who has bought it until the year of jubilee. And in the jubilee it shall go out and he shall return to his possession.

29 'And if a man sells a dwelling-house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold. Within a full year he may redeem it. 30 And if it is not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be established forever to him who bought it throughout his generations. It shall not go out in the jubilee. 31 But the houses of the villages which have no walls around them shall be counted as the fields of the country. They may be redeemed and they shall go out in the jubilee. 32 Nevertheless, the cities of the Levites and the houses of the cities of their possession, the Levites may redeem at any time. 33 And if a man purchases from the Levites, then the house that was sold and the city of his possession shall go out in the year of jubilee, for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel. 34 But the field of the suburbs of their cities may not be sold, for it is their perpetual possession.

35 'And if your brother becomes poor and falls in decay with you, then you shall relieve him as though he were a stranger or a sojourner and he shall live with you. 36 Take no interest from him or increase, but fear your God so that your brother may live with you. 37 You shall not give him your money upon interest, nor lend him your food for increase. 38 I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.

39 'And if your brother who dwells by you becomes poor and is sold to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave. 40 But as a hired servant and as a sojourner he shall be with you and shall serve you until the year of jubilee. 41 And then he shall depart from you—both he and his children with him—and shall return to his own family, and to the possession of his fathers he shall return. 42 For they are my servants which I brought out of the land of Egypt. They shall not be sold as slaves. 43 You shall not rule over him with rigor, but shall fear your God. 44 Both your men-servants and your women-servants which you may have shall be of the heathen who are around you. Of them you shall buy men-servants and women-servants. 45 Moreover, of the children of the strangers who sojourn among you, of them you shall buy, and of their families who are with you, which they begot in your land, and they shall be your possession. 46 And you shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you to inherit them for a possession. They shall be your servants forever. But over your brothers the children of Israel, you shall not rule over one another with rigor.

47 'And if a sojourner or a stranger becomes rich by you, and your brother who dwells by him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner by you, or to the stock of the stranger's family, 48 After he is sold he may be redeemed again. One of his brothers may redeem him, 49 His uncle or his uncle's son may redeem him, anyone who is near of kin to him of his family may redeem him, or if he is able, he may redeem himself. 50 And he shall reckon with him who bought him from the year that he was sold to him to the year of jubilee, and the price of his sale shall be according to the number of years, according to the time of a hired servant it shall be with him. 51 If there are yet many years behind, according to them he shall give back the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for. 52 And if there remain but few years to the year of jubilee, then he shall count with him, and according to his years he shall give him back the price of his redemption. 53 And as a yearly hired servant he shall be with him. And the other shall not rule with rigor over him in your sight. 54 And if he is not redeemed in these years, then he shall go out in the year of jubilee—both he and his children with him. 55 For to me the children of Israel are servants. They are my servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.'"

Commentary

Matthew Henry Commentary - Leviticus, Chapter 25[➚]

Notes

[v.43] - Reference, Ephesians 6:9.

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